Crosby skates before Penguins practice

Ailing Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was on the ice in Pittsburgh for a pre-practice skate Monday.

Crosby, who had been skating on his own the past couple of weeks, joined injured teammates Simon Despres and Jordan Staal and strength and conditioning coach Mike Kadar.

Crosby was diagnosed last week with having had a neck injury -- reportedly, cracks in his two uppermost vertebrae, the C1 and C2 -- as well as a concussion. The cracks have since healed, and there has been no clear indication whether the injury dates back to Crosby's initial concussion woes more than a year ago.

The diagnosis was carred out by Dr. Robert S. Bray, a neurological spine specialist based in Los Angeles. His findings will be evaluated by independent specialists over the next few days.

Crosby, 25, missed 61 games after suffering a concussion in January 2011, the result of two hard hits four days apart. He returned to the lineup Nov. 21 and had two goals and 10 assists in eight game before apparently suffering another concussion on Dec. 5. Crosby has missed the Pens' past 21 games.